Man would be like the stone-age man living by depending on nature and its natural gifts. We would remain intelligent but ignorant about our intelligence. We could be content with the food we find in nature but would lack the desire to eat tasty food. In the modern age every man is busy running from one end to another in the process of doing his job, in the sense, to earn bread for his family. This he does because of the various opportunities and job options that he has due to his education.

But if there were no technological progress there would have been no education. We would only be looking up to the nature, experiencing the heat of the sun, rain, cold as and when given without any desire for beautiful roofs and shelters. Whenever we are hungry we would go in search of food and not behind the means to earn it. Parents would be free from trouble in the absence of demands for pizzas, burgers etc.

With no education there would be no competition and hence less violence probably. Demands for entertainment of the minds also would be absent. In the absence of technological progress means of communication and transport would not prevail. The atmosphere would be clean with no pollution anywhere. Priests would be busy trying to find solution to human problems by persuading the humble people to endure their hard lot as destined. There would be no need of yoga gurus or gyms as people would be exercising enough by walking long distances. There would be no need of counseling the minds about the art of living, since a person who has sufficed his hunger by whatever means is a happy person at the end of the day.

Doesn’t the Indian Cabinet enjoy a right to design a bill in the interest of the Nation and present it to the Parliament for approval? The Opposition parties opposed the bill of FDI in retail marketing tooth and nail and stalled the functioning of the law making body for a full week.

Refusing the demand for shelving the bill totally, the government merely agreed to hold the bill in abeyance to be introduced at a later date. This step not because the Opposition parties wanted it but one of the government’s allies, the Trinamool Congress opposed the bill. And its view had to be respected .

Ms Mamta Banerjee’s stand was that if the Walmart and other international giants enter our retail market, our Indian retailers would suffer and lose their job.

May I ask Ms Banerjee to answer some questions connected with retail marketing? Are we getting quality goods from our retailers? Are all the items sold at fair price? The answer is negative for both questions.

I wonder if our Political bosses are aware that the retailers have been too greedy and have been depriving the public to the extent of 30 -40% profit on manufactured goods. They hve been swallowing the public’s share of the profit granted by the manufacturers? This has been going on for over 40 years and the public does not know it.

Till the year about 1970, the manufacturers never printed the price on the manufactured items. Every retailer charged according to his whims. So, the government wanted the manufacturers to print the sale price on the cover. The manufacturers came with a novel proposal that they would show the price to include 60-100% profit and call it MRP (Maximum retail price); the retailers must share this profit with the customers to any extent they liked. Some took only 25% margin and gave the remaining to the customers. Some gave a nominal rebate of Rs. 5 -10. Over 90% retailers ignored this rule making themselves the real beneficiaries of the MRP formula. Thus the customers have been buying these products at a much higher price than intended by the manufacturer.

Very few retailers are considerate. One electrical shop I know in Chennai has been observing this rule faithfully much to the astonishment of the customers. For instance, I bought an Immersion heater at Rs. 350 while the MRP marked was Rs. 525. Did the retailer sell the item at a loss? No, he took his margin of 25% and transferred the rest to the customer. As a result, this shop is doing a roaring business.

One super market boasted that his shop was an MRP market and never sold anything higher than the MRP price. When I asked him, at what price he bought the items from the manufacturer or whole saler, he wouldn’t reveal it to me.

There you are, Ms. Mamta. The Indian public has been taken for a ride by these notorious retailers and you want to support them?

Go to any provision store. You get rice and wheat mixed with all sorts of decorative materials such as twigs, stones and excreta and a small percentage of rotten grains as well. Are they quality material? Do the retailers bother to sell clean cereals in packets of sorts? They cheat on the weight also. You never get more than 900 grams when you pay for 1 kg material. Are the retailers being fair to their country men?

Let the TMC leaders carry out a quality check of our retail market to get to know the truth and also spot out the various tricks and other malpractices being followed by our retailers. When the multi nationals come, they may wake up and compete with them and the public will really benefit .An Indian retailer will not suffer if he is honest and supply the material in ship shape condition at a competitive rate. An Indian customer then would opt for the Indian retailer and not enter the multi national shops.

Incidentally, it should the National policy that the profit margin should not be more than 25% of the ex factory price or market price. Give up the practice of printing MRP approach and merely show, “Saleprice”.

True beauty is the reflection of our inner and outer self. Which largely include our body cells, our skin types and our personal health and habit. Nurturing and nourishing ourselves can bring immense boost to our self esteem, confidence level and general health.

When comes to skin health, it would be sheer foolishness not to take the basic care. Skin acts as a barrier between the outside world and our interior organs. So, it’s time we realized the implications of the changes of our skin.

First and foremost, we need to understand our skin types so that we can take proper care and nourishment. Coming to it, there are 5 major types of skin types.

What are the 5 major skin types

Normal skin:

Normal skin is most desirable since it requires minimum nurturing. It is toned vitalized with the right amount of oil balance.

Oily skin:

This skin type appears greasy and tends to attract dirt, dust and grime easily. If not taken proper and timely care, this may lead to black and white heads, pimples, spots and eruptions.

Dry skin:

This type of skin appears dry and flaky due to lack of moisture due to inadequate secretion from the sebaceous glands. This skin type tends to age fast.

Combination skin:

This type of skin appears dry at the cheeks, around the mouth and the eyes and appears oily at the forehead, nose and chin (the T zone).

Sensitive skin:

This type of skin has a nice texture and is sensitive to climatic changes and chemical ingredients present in cosmetic products.

How to know your skin types

When you wake up in the morning, wipe your face with a facial tissue. If it gathers greasy patches then it is oily skin. If the oil is only in the T zone then its combination skin. If it feels very dry and parched then it is dry and if your skin feels neither too dry nor too oily then you have normal skin and something to be proud of.

Women hold up one half of the sky, make up one half of the world’s task force and fulfil one half of the planet’s potential. In women lie nature’s best qualities of motherhood, compassion, humanity and love. Since they have been blessed with the capacity for giving and nurturing life, women also have the capacity for a deep commitment for preserving and nourishing not only their own offspring, but of the entire planet world.

After they have been downtrodden and disfranchised for centuries, women have developed unparalleled skills of frugality, economy and resource management. They have been bestowed with softer and gentler qualities therefore women eschew wars, violence and destruction of the planet. The tragedy of human race as seen is that, for too long muscle and brute power ascendant over the emotional and spiritual strength. Looking at the mess that the world entered lead to the realization that another approach is required. To women then, the world must turn to bring healing and spiritual qualities of positivity and patience.

That is the time women stepped out of the shadows to take their rightful place beside men in steering the course of the future. One has to look at the women who have broken the shackles of their conditioning, from Rani of Jhansi to Helen Keller-the deaf and dum genius, Indira Gandhi to Kalpana Chawla. Just like a word is inseparable from its meaning, the name Ela Bhat is inseparable from the SEWA- Self-employed women’s association. She has rescued thousands of women by giving financial help. In 2010 she was awarded the Niwano Peace Prize for the upliftment of poor women. She also received the first ever Global Fairness Award by Clindent in Ahmadabad.

Kiran Mazumdar Shaw is an Indian businesswoman, technocrat, innovator and the founder of Biocon, the leading bio-technology enterprise based in Banglore. She has spearheaded its evolution and in her pursuits, she faced many challenges but never gave up. With her steering Biocon became the first to receive US funding. Her pioneering work earned her the Padmashree in 1989 and Padmabhushan in 2005 from the govt of India. She is also named among the hundred most influential people by the Times magazine and also in the Forbes list, Nikai Asian Prize 2009 etc.

Today there are many women organizations fighting many causes for the well-being and safety of women. This shows and makes us recognize that when a power of woman is unbound and unleashed there is no force on earth that can stop her from achieving her goals and realizing her dreams.

Yet much remains to be done. The memory of too many centuries of separation still haunts the women and holds them back from coming into their own. They are still to realize the extent of their true strength and their enormous potentiality.

Let each woman stand as an inspiration to other women. Women are the nature’s finest force and the planet’s cherished hope. AND THE TIME HAS COME FOR THEM TO EMERGE AS LEADERS IN THEIR OWN RIGHT

It would appear that the Indian Electorate have no voice whatever in the administration of India once they have elected a Government at the Centre! There is no mechanism either to ascertain the views of the Electorate before a law is passed. The Parliament goes ahead with its programme of voting the bill unmindful of the public’s stand on it.

To quote an example: In the recent Parliamentary debate about FDI in the Retail trade, the Opposition parties vehemently opposed the bill. In fact, they wanted the government to shelve it and throw it into the wastepaper basket. But, by and large, the public favoured the FDI’s entry in the retail market going by the various newspaper reports. The FICCI has also endorsed the move.

Since one of its partners in the UPA had opposed the bill, the government withdrew it to be introduced at a later date. This is a clear case of difference in perception between the government and the people who elected it.

Does the Parliament take into account the mood and reactions of the Electorate on any issue under discussion there? None whatsoever. The Public and its views are completely ignored and the Parliament goes ahead as if the Electorate doesn’t exist. Is this kind of thinking correct and is it consistent with the principles of Democratic functioning? One would like to ask, if the government and the Opposition care about public opinion at all? It’s like the Political parties saying, “You have elected us. You have no further role in the affairs of the Nation. We will run the country for you. Ask no questions. OK?”

An MP is supposed to reflect the aspirations of the people of his/her constituency and convey their thoughts in the Parliament. Does he/she really ascertain the views on any issue? No. The actual truth is, that he becomes inaccessible to his own people. Overnight he turns into a super human being. He acts on his own as if people don’t count anymore.. Is this democracy.? Is the government then of the people, for the people and by the people? “By the people, yes”, but not the other two axioms.

The Indian newspapers have not been helpful in this regard at all. If they do, it is the Editor’s personal view and not that of its readers.

In this connection I have a suggestion to make. According to the Google report, the Electorate inIndia are 565.78 million. And our cell phone population is 873 million as in August 2011. It might have gone up by a couple of lakhs during the intervening period. Obviously, some individuals have more than one mobile, hence more in number compared to the number of voters. It is reasonable to assume that every voter does possess a cell phone. Why can’t we make use of this scenario to invite public opinion on any matter, like it is a referendum of sorts? What we need is an organization to co-ordinate the proceedings.

Perhaps one of the newspapers which has a circulation all overIndia could step into this role. As a matter of fact ,I have given this idea to Deccan Chronicle, a Daily published from Chennai. And they are working on it.

All the news paper has to do is, to state the purpose of the referendum and explain in detail the issue concerned and ask the individuals to give their answers through SMS on three points – YES, NO, NO OPINION. And the result may be conveyed to the government. Equipments are available to receive the SMS’s in millions centrally and all in a matter of minutes.

By this way the public can indirectly partake in the decision making process. The government and opposition parties dare not go against the public opinion. If they do, it will be at their own peril.

Even if 50 -60 % respond to the questionnaire, we can take it that it is the majority view. The cell phone users will become more conscious of this responsibility as time goes by and respond enthusiastically.

This modus operandi appears to be the most suitable and practicable one to ascertain the reaction of the electorate on important issues.

Readers of this article may convey their opinion to this proposal. No governmental sanction is required to implement this plan. What we need is a responsible organization to conduct the voting system.

In time of test,’ family is the best.’ All the hurdles of the day are eased at the end of the day when you are back with your family.
‘Joint’ means tied together. A joint family with number of members definitely sounds more secure. We can find many solutions or many helping hands. One would definitely be in less danger if one’s own kith and kin are fun to be with.
But many times members of a joint family never really speak their minds to one another. They maintain an atmosphere of unreality. Each one lives in an atmosphere of suppressed ill-feeling. ‘Unity in diversity’ if maintained then a joint family may succeed. Having individual independence in one’s own private decision making, finances, entertainment etc and by maintaining all round unity, can help survive a joint family.
Just like India is a country with different languages, caste & religion, so also a joint family has people with different ideas & behavioral habits. If one respects & recognizes each other’s views as well as tolerate or each other’s behavior & thinking, then the fruits of a joint family can surely be enjoyed.
The strength of a man is portrayed by his capacity to adjust to the different minds and situations in a joint family. If he can adjust to the ifs & buts at home, then he can surely adjust with his outside world. Truly speaking our public affections begin in our families. No cold relation can be zealous citizen. Blood relations may be thicker but they can be nastier too. If members of a family do not open up, then a joint family may become a home of all social evils and a hell for the children in particular. A selfless member who volunteers to shoulder the joint pack selflessly may at the end find himself reading a story to a sleepy child.

I live in the city of Chennai, India. Do you know what it has become famous for in recent years? The city has nearly become the Detroit of USA, going by the number of 4- wheelers and 2-wheelers it produces on daily basis. There are around 13 major manufacturers of automobiles of different varieties.

Recession may be lurking in a corner and inflation may be galloping right before our eyes, but there is no dearth of car and motor bike buyers. I wonder where these people get their money from.

It is difficult to walk on the roads these days. At any time of day or night, you would find the road space filled with vehicles, mostly two wheelers; most of them threatening to knock a pedestrian down.

The vehicle population in the state of Tamil Nadu is 14 million of all types as in August 2011. It may have gone up by another half a million by now. The 2-wheelers top the list – 11 .5 million and of these 2.6 million are in Chennai city alone.

What is more disturbing is that these vehicles have become giant killers. In the year 2010 alone, the deaths in Tamil Nadu roads were a whopping 65,000. This is quite close to the national figure of 150,000.

Why should we get into lime light like this for wrong reasons? Is life so cheap in our State? Over 1.2 million are injured and over 3 million disabled in the whole of India. Our roads are good and one would be tempted to drive at a cruising speed of 100 kmph on highways. One often sees youngsters flying at 60 and 70 in their two wheelers right on the city roads. Now, you know why accidents occur.

The dead are dead and gone. One may not even remember their names after some six months. But what about those who have been seriously injured. A visit to the government hospitals would reveal how some young lives have been severely dented and put out of action. A lost leg or a hand cannot be retrieved. A head injury puts a man completely out of normal life for the rest of his life. He is a living dead, as it were !

You may ask why I am lamenting over these figures. Supposing the injured happens to be your own brother or sister or even wife. Would you forgive the chap who had caused this damage?

The question is what do we do about the road accidents? What do you and I and the third person over there do to minimise the casualties?. We need to put our thinking cap on and find ways and means. Let’s not sit quiet all because none of our near and dear ones have been affected. Shed tears for the wounded and debilitated and pray to God to give good sense to the vehicle owners.

The political trend in India kick starts and proceeds like a marathon but does not, or seems not to have finality, although politics is the oldest profession . Any political party definitely begins with or has good ideas, but ends up confused as to what is its goal. This may be because no party is given or left without opposition, to show or do what it has promised its people. Just like there are two sides of the same coin, every party has two sides good and bad. As soon as one party comes to power, the others are busy doing research to pull out all the possible loopholes and flaws to defame the seated power. The seated power would fight and fight to save their party. Anyone who would support its leader when he is wrong is welcomed into the party. All during his tenure, time is spent in looking over his shoulders to see if his supporters are there for him. If yes, then he is confident that he is the true leader or his position is safe.

Today India has innumerable Indians who want to serve the country by being the part of the system. Innumerable parties have been formed, each one with its own cause- fight corruption, help the down-trodden, spread education, good governance, equal representation for women, help the farmers etc etc. Everyone wants everything asked for. But how to achieve, what path, what methods-nobody is aware.

These are the questions which each political party in its tenure is attempting to study & find. But how sad! Term ends but no solution. The party ends up not by placing itself at the service of the nation but by placing the nation at its service.

I woke up to a beautiful day, unlike the past couple of days when the sun did not wake up at all and the rains were having a ball. Not really a rain girl, I would rather laze in my warm settee than to enjoy the rhetoric of the rains.

It was early in the morning and the sun was already looking so beautiful. Series of memories visited me and made me unusually nostalgic. I handled my white and gold rim ceramic cup just filled with semi fuming Darjeeling tea with little milk and sugar. I like it with milk, I always have. Over the years, my taste for tea has changed, grown and have substantiated me. I have been a tea drinker ever since my late teens. My grandma, an addict and a beautiful heart, was the first to rise and make her and the family the first cup of tea. She only used to get going after her first cup. I, essentially being her flower child, used to love the little sips that would made me feel like her, more than anything else. Tea got me to its clings, literally, much later. I would love the masala chai loaded with sugar and milk. That was a phase which had its lovely moments. As I grew up, I found tea more enigmatic. The flavors are variant, distinctive and appealing.

Grandma left the legacy of tea drinking to me. In my family, now, it’s only my father and I, who relish the idea of morning and evening teas, teas for different occasions and weathers. We love everything that is good tea and how it is served. I believe in that the flavor changes or enhances with the right kind of serving containers. So, I stress on the right kind of cups for a different kinds of teas. My mother hardly drinks tea but has specializes on the art of making it on my insistence. I am picky when it comes to tea. My sisters and their family are occasional tea drinkers – something I appreciate. But when they are visiting us, I manage to tempt them to some relishing cups of tea. The idea of having it all together is really alluring and great fun. We serve it with lots of cookies, Indian snacks, love and gossips.

Things have changed over the years, we have metamorphosed, father has gone more bald, I have had my first grey hair sneaking out every now and then and grandma is no more. But our love for good tea is one good constant factor that has still gotten us all together to the morning tea table over a beautiful tea drinking ritual.

As a child I always loved to go to office like my dad. Life sounded so happy for my father according to me, with no teacher homework etc. ‘Do what you like’ was the life of my dad. The bus ride to school was exciting, but how I wished it was to a picnic and not to school. The drawing class-wow! Awesome periods in which I never missed, my mother, grandmother, aunts & my wonderful toys. Then the number-work class followed by science class bought back home-sickness writing numbers and number names brought tears to my eyes and learning the spellings of animals and plants brought big sobs.
The morning milk was so boring. I wished I could have some cool drinks. The lunch bell brought back smiles. Eating with friends was fun- sharing food with each other. I loved playing hide & seek after lunch. I recollect when one day I was hiding behind the wall of our school building trying hard not to be spotted. The bell rang but I did not hear. I was hiding wondering how I was not being spotted while at the same time feeling happy that I had won. Fifteen minutes passed, I became aware of my loneliness. I slowly came out of my hiding only to find out silence everywhere. I rushed to the class. The social studies teacher had started the monotonous history lecture. She just loved to punish me by asking to write the lesson- British Rule in India 3 times. Then was our computer class. I loved it. Fascinated with the thought of learning without holding pen, pencil, eraser etc, the computer sounded a great wonder for me. The school bell rang; my face glittered to go home. The teacher had filled up the complaint column. My promises to my mother that I would not repeat my mistakes again were another routine to my mom. Sundays were the best. Everyone has a holiday spending some good time with my grandmother, aunts & mom watching my favourite shows on tv, but Sunday night beats the trumpet of Monday morning oh! Oh! No how long.

Well, its not everyday that you hear the frog & the Princess’ kiss alluded to. And hearing it twice from a damsel in traffic distress and a lad in croaking financial agony in one single day, I simply felt dazed as to how many people take fairy tales and most importantly the frog & the Princess seriously.There is definitely something bewitchingly curious about the frog ( a green one mind it! ) and the Princess.

I do remember myself becoming better interested in the amphibian life after accidentally pondering upon the possibilities of Mr Charming disguising as the not so charming green frog. Life of the frog is indispensable for the life of the ecosystem it dwells in, and yet the creature has seldom been given its rightful place in the human realm of imagination and creativity.Kissing a frog seems repulsive and yet the task becomes necessary to bring out the Prince once cursed.So when I heard a friend cry out for her Prince to carry her off from the stubborn traffic & she was ready to kiss a frog for it and yet another friend gasping at his credit card bills and willing to turn into a green frog if sure to be kissed by a RICH damsel in mild distress that doesn’t involve money or muscled men..I just felt that the fairy tale frog isn’t that repulsive after all. On second thoughts, I remember saving a frog myself from my environmentally unfriendly cousin, not exactly coz of my love for nature but for fairy tales and green frogs who just might be…. 🙂